After missing out on a face-to-face meeting with her, Mr Gates used a keynote speech on international development in London last night to lecture Britain to carry on our foreign aid binge - despite admitting it is wasted on corrupt states.

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He said: “Withdrawing aid would cost lives – which is reason enough to continue it. But it would also create a leadership vacuum that others will fill, undermining the UK’s influence in these regions.”

But despite his staunch defence of Britain’s 0.7 per cent target, Mr Gates admitted it will “never be possible to eliminate small-scale corruption or waste entirely”.

Britain currently spends £13bn on foreign aid, which has come under fire for funding projects such as the girl group dubbed 'Ethiopian Spice Girls'

And he added: “When aid is mismanaged it is a double crime - stealing both from the taxpayer and from the poor.”

The foreign aid pledge is already at the centre of a pre-election tug of war between Tory figures.

Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson also pleaded on Mrs May not to ditch the policy. Speaking alongside Mr Gates in central London last night, she said the target was vital in keeping Britain a “good, global citizen” after Brexit.

Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson pleaded with Mrs May not to ditch the policy

She said: “Misuse of aid funds not only means that vital support does not go to the people who need it in some of the poorest nations on the planet, it also risks eroding public support for our aid commitment here at home.

“We must now ensure that every penny goes where it is needed.”

There are growing calls from within the Tory party to scrap the 0.7 per cent target following a string of damaging revelations about Britain’s foreign aid spending.

"So let’s hope common sense is going to prevail. It will certainly be in my election manifesto in Shipley - to campaign against spending so much money on overseas aid and I very much hope it will be in the party’s manifesto too.”